Volume 1 - CH 7

I won again”

As expected even Arisa will feel happy when she wins a game. Her usual cool expression was a little loose.

The corner of her mouth was slightly raised and the corner for her eyes were slightly down. However, in her emerald eyes…as usual, there was no light.

I was a little disappointed, but…when I saw Arisa’s cute expression, I thought it wasn’t bad to lose.

It’s not that I like it, but the smile of a beautiful girl is still good for your eyes.

“Is there something on my face?”

“No, no…I thought you were really good for a beginner .”

I replied to Arisa, who was tilting her head curiously, while dodging her question.

I can’t tell her that I was looking at her face because I thought it was cute.

“You don’t play games at your home?”

“I don’t have …… much of a chance to play it. My adoptive mother has a negative attitude towards games, and also …… that, if I do play, she gets angry at me. If you have time to play, study, she says.”

“…I see.”

I felt it at the time of the matchmaking, but it seems that Airisa’s position at the Amagi family is not very good. Maybe there are games at her home,  but at least it seems that Arisa rarely gets a chance to play a game with the other children of the Amagi family.

That’s why she came all the way to my house to play the game.

“Takasegawa-san…you’re lousy at it though.”

“You don’t have to say it like that.”

“But you are really lousy.”

“You don’t have to say it twice. …You can also make a joke like that.”

”Did you think I was a person who couldn’t make a single joke?”

Arisa glared at me with an annoyed expression. When I cowered my shoulders, she rephrased.

“I’m also not very good at it, but don’t you usually play these games?”

“Hmm … I don’t play a lot of games in the first place.”

“Even though you have so many?”

Airisa said with a sideways glance at the game I had prepared for her. There are fifty of them, including the latest and the oldest ones. From an outsider’s perspective, it would look like I am a game lover.

“I am bored so…”

“As expected, are you the type who gets satisfied by buying things?”

“As expected?”

“Because the kitchen was uselessly well-equipped with …iron cooker, pressure cooker, etc.”

I had a number of exaggerated cooking utensils for a man who doesn’t cook much. From this, Arisa must have guessed that I was a “buy-but-don’t-use” kind of person.

…I can’t deny it because I am in the wrong here.

“I’m sure there were a lot of muscle training equipment in the living room, right?”

“Oh … Well, I use it occasionally. I’ve been doing … muscle training itself, okay?　I do go to the gym sometimes with my friends though.”

“Really?”

“…… I can’t tell such a silly lie. Do you want to confirm?”

I asked her “If you don’t believe me, I’ll show you the proof” while grabbing my shirt, and Arisa turned away in a hurry with her white skin changing into vermilion.

“No, no…it’s fine.”

As I thought, she is not immune to men.

I was convinced that the reason why she was said to be cute was not only her appearance but also her personality and gestures. 

“That’s right, Yukishiro. Are you thirsty?”

She is too cute, but it will be awkward if she keeps looking embarrassed forever.

I asked her to change the topic.

It’s about half past two.

It’s a good time to have a snack.

“Oh, then I’ll have some.”

“Okay…Is coffee good?”

“Okay, Do you have milk and sugar?”

“Yes, I have them. Then, I’m brewing now.”

Even if you say brewing, it does not mean that you make it by boiling water.

Simply place the mug in the coffee maker installed in the kitchen and press the button.

And the coffee will be ready.

I returned to the living room, holding the two mugs in both hands, and placed them on the table.

Arisa raised her eyebrow slightly.

“It’s fast.”

“I have a coffee maker.”

“I see, so that mechanical sound was from the coffee maker .”

“That’s right … I’ll bring you milk and sugar.”

I said so and went back to the kitchen to get milk and sugar. Then I took out the cake I bought from the refrigerator.

“I’m back.”

“Welcome back. …Takasegawa-san, isn’t that from the famous place in your neighborhood?”

It seems she noticed the cake I brought. Her expression quickly recovered, but…she kept glancing at the box.

“Oh, you also knew. Can you eat sweets?”

“Yes, I like sweets as much as anyone else.”

That’s good to hear, I opened the box with a relief. There are two shortcakes and two chocolate cakes inside.

“Which one do you like?”

“Well, uh…please wait.”

Arisa began to worry, grunting and groaning, with a serious expression on her face. Her jade-colored eyes moved repeatedly from side to side.

After much deliberation, she chose the shortcakes.

By a process of elimination, I got the chocolate cake

I put it on the plate and started eating immediately

.

Because It was from a well known store, It was really good.

After checking the taste of the cake…I looked at Arisa’s expression.

Impressions…I didn’t need to hear.

(I’m glad you were pleased.)

Her expression was relaxed, the cheeks were slightly red as she brought the cake to her mouth.

As soon as it was in her mouth, her eyes squinted and her small mouth drew a small arc.

The corner of her eye slightly dropped and she had a dreamy expression.

Then she sipped the coffee and instantly frowned.

It seems like milk and sugar were not enough.

“… What are you laughing at?”

“No, I’m sorry. It was funny.”

“You’re a rude person.”

She raised her eyebrows in annoyance. The way she said that, but also threw milk and sugar cubes into the coffee was a bit ridiculous.

“Sorry, It was my bad. …but I am glad you are pleased.”

When I said that with a little laugh, Airisa looked dissatisfied.

However, the hand that moves the fork did not stop.

And when she puts the cake in her mouth, her facial expression becomes soft immediately.

“Well, I’ll forgive you. But…Takasegawa-san, you also know about these stores.”

“Well I go there relatively often. With my friends.”

When I said that, Arisa was astonished! Her eyes were wide open with surprise.

She was so surprised that she froze, holding a fork in her hands.

“Oh, come on, your reaction is too much.”

“Oh, oh …… sorry. When you say friend, do you mean, um, class friends?”

“No. Soichiro Satake and Sei Ryozenji … do you understand?”

“I’ve heard of these names. I’m not sure if the name matches the face, though.”

It’s been less than two months since I entered the school. Although, I remember the faces of people in my same class, but it’s normal to not remember the faces of the people from other classes.

Rather, just knowing their name will be a surprise.

“What’s up with those guys. Are they famous?”

“Among the girls in my class …… sometimes their names come up. Well, they’re famous for their well-organized features.”

“Well, they’ve got a good face.”

However, if you ask me if I am perfect as a human being and a man, I can’t help but tilt my head back.

Especially Soichiro.

“…–But, though.”

Airisa mumbled something to herself.

The voice was too small to be heard.

“What did you say?”

“No, nothing.”

I asked her, but she replied back with an expression that says she is done speaking.